


from, your secret admirer

by flicker_album



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M, Mentions of Anxiety, Mutual Pining, Pining, Secret Admirer, Social Media, Social Media AU, Tumblr, Tumblr AU, Valentine's Day, bc i'm me, i'm awful with tags so i'll probably add more to this as i think of it, musical boyfriend duo, so liam and zayn are famous in this, so they're mentioned but not really in it? if that makes sense, they're boyfriends and they are singers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-12
Updated: 2019-02-12
Packaged: 2019-10-27 02:03:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17757698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flicker_album/pseuds/flicker_album
Summary: “I did something nice today.”Niall gave him a blank stare. “That’s what you didn't want to tell me? Seriously, H. You do something nice every day. Multiple times a day, even.”Sighing, Harry said, “Yeah, but this is… different…” He trailed off, still unsure of how to say it.Niall just continued to stare. “Well?”“I’m sending secret admirer anons to someone on Tumblr.”Or the one where Louis is Harry's Tumblr crush so he sends him secret admirer messages for Valentine's Day





	from, your secret admirer

**Author's Note:**

> Hiiii! I'm glad to be getting this out before Valentine's Day, despite being sick twice in the last month. I originally had this idea around Christmas when a lot of people were doing Secret Santa messages but I tweaked it a little to make it fit for Valentine's Day!
> 
> I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> This is un-beta'd so any mistakes are my own, but feel free to tell me if you see any so I can fix them! Also, this is a work of fiction! It does not represent any of the real life people mentioned.

_ Scroll, scroll. Like. Reblog. Scroll, scroll, scroll. Reblog. _

Harry mindlessly passed time on Tumblr as he did multiple times a day. It was his go-to social media, mostly because of the fandom he called home and the friends he’d made along the way.

He first became a fan of L&Z, musical duo and boyfriends Liam Payne and Zayn Malik, a year ago. After their first single  _ You & I  _ was released Harry was a casual fan. Their album came out not long after that and he became proper obsessed. Their musical style was the perfect blend of R&B and pop, not to mention he was in awe of how talented they were. Finding out they were boyfriends was like the icing on the cake for Harry.

There weren’t many openly gay artists his age that were in a band together. Harry himself was an openly gay aspiring musician so he really looked up to Liam and Zayn. They inspired him to keep his dream of being a musician alive. He regularly posted snippets of original songs, along with cover songs, on his Tumblr for his followers and friends to listen to. Although the main content on his blog was Liam and Zayn.

Making friends on Tumblr wasn’t the easiest thing for him but once he found the L&Z fandom it definitely became his internet home. He had some really great mutuals, some of which he knew in real life. He currently studies music at university and met another musician, Niall, in class last year. Niall, a fan of L&Z also, was actually the one who got him to join Tumblr in the first place. 

The amount of friends he had made on Tumblr was small, but they were great. Niall had connected him to some other fans as well. As he scrolled down his dashboard he saw one of those friends had reblogged something that caught his eye. It’s just a simple, silly text post stating  _ since it’s almost valentine’s day, does anyone wanna admit they fancy me?  _ Harry let out a small snort laugh at it before he realized just who had posted it.  _ lzrainbows _ . Louis. His own Tumblr crush. 

He started following Louis about a year ago, right around the time Niall introduced him to the L&Z Tumblr fandom. Louis’ quick witted text posts immediately pulled him in, but he had a softer side too. He frequently answered anons that were questioning their sexuality with helpful advice, seeing as he was gay. 

Harry’s finger was still hovering over the reblog button on his mobile screen. He was about to reblog and add some funny tags when he got an idea.  _ I should send secret admirer anons to Louis for Valentine’s day.  _ Harry really didn't care too much about Valentine's day but it seemed like Louis might. It would be a cute way to cheer him up (if he’s sad about being single, maybe?) and for Harry to anonymously tell Louis he fancied him. 

It’s not like he hadn’t ever talked to Louis before. He would definitely consider them friends and hoped Louis would also. They’ve even been in a group chat together. He has learned little tidbits about Louis over time, other than his age and location (23 and Doncaster, both of which are stated in his Tumblr bio). Harry knew he had a large family and loved to spend time with them. It’s part of the reason he still lives at home while in uni, where he’s studying musical theater.

Without a second thought he clicked on Louis’ url and went to his ask box. The first thing he did was switch it to anon. He didn’t want to forget and accidentally send it showing his true identity. He thought of something to send and typed it up quickly. 

**_Anonymous to lzrainbows:_ ** _ It’s not quite Valentine’s day yet, but yes, I do fancy you. I think you’re absolutely lovely. From, your secret admirer.  _

Adrenaline rushed through Harry just from sending it. He looked at the date and realized that there was a little over a week before Valentine’s day. He could send at least one a day, if not more, but he wasn’t sure what to do once it got to be Valentine’s day. Should he tell Louis it’s him? He guessed he could if Louis asked or seemed really into the idea of knowing who it was. 

Harry quickly exited the Tumblr app once he realized he would be late for his next class if he didn’t hurry. He knew if he had the time he would sit and refresh his dashboard over and over again until he saw if Louis has answered it. 

As he made his way into to the classroom and spotted Niall, he contemplated telling him about sending Louis secret admirer anons but decided not to. He could only imagine the teasing Niall would make him endure if he knew Harry fancied Louis.

“Hey mate,” Niall said as Harry took a seat next to him. Class hadn’t started yet so they had a few minutes to catch up. “You alright?”

Harry frowned. “Yeah, why? What’s up?”

“Nothing, you just had a big smile on your face when you walked in. Seemed like you were excited to go to class or something.” 

“Yeah, right,” Harry huffed out a laugh. “Definitely not happy about that.”

“Oh, so you are happy about something then?” Damn it, Niall. “What is it?” He smirked at Harry who kept his mouth clamped shut in an effort to not break down and tell him.

“Good afternoon, class,” their professor spoke from the front of the room. He was saved from having to say anything to Niall.

“Don’t think you’re getting out of this that easy,” Niall muttered under his breath. 

Okay... so he was saved from having to say anything to Niall for at least another two hours.

\+ + + + +

After class Niall had to stay behind to talk to their professor. It was the perfect excuse for Harry to  _ not _ wait up for him, thus avoiding any more questions. “Sorry, Ni. Gotta rush to class!” The glare he got in return was blinding. 

As Harry walked to his next class, he pulled out his phone to scroll Tumblr again. He forced himself to stay on his dashboard instead of going straight to Louis’ profile to see if he answered the anonymous ask. He’d almost given up hope when he saw it. Louis’ answer. He quickly sat down on the steps to the building he was about to walk into, over to the side so he wasn’t in the way.

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ It’s not quite Valentine’s day yet, but yes, I do fancy you. I think you’re absolutely lovely. From, your secret admirer. _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ tbh my first instinct is to assume this is a joke but it doesn’t sound like it ??? so i’ll answer this with sincerity. thank you, secret admirer. you’re very sweet  _ ♥

_ #if this is a joke ignore this !!! #but if it’s real i am curious as to who it is ? #hmm  _ _ #secret admirer #anon  _

Harry had about 10 minutes before his next class started and it was about 5 to walk to the room. He had enough time to send another secret admirer message. He didn’t plan on sending more than one today but Louis didn’t seem put off by it so why not?

**Anonymous to lzrainbows:** _ No, this isn’t a joke! I do genuinely fancy you, just too shy and nervous to say who I am. From, your secret admirer.  _

Harry hit send, got up, and hoped he could stay focused in class for the next two hours.

\+ + + + +

When Harry got back to the flat he shared with Niall, he collapsed on the sofa. It wasn’t a particularly bad day, he’d just been very unfocused since sending that first anon to Louis. He knew Niall would pester him about what made him so smiley earlier and he thought he might as well just tell him. 

Niall had class for another two hours so Harry got up to shower and do some school work before he started dinner. When he was about halfway done with his shower he realized he never checked to see if Louis had replied to his second anon ask. He quickly finished up, unable to wait to check his phone. 

Quickly drying off after getting out of the shower, he wrapped his towel around his body and went back to his bedroom. He pulled on some pants, put his towel in the dirty clothes, and fell backwards onto his bed. Now that his hair was shorter it didn’t retain as much water after his showers but it was still a little wet so he rolled over onto his stomach. He grabbed his phone and blindly opened the Tumblr app. 

This time he had no control and went to Louis’ page straight away. He was giddy in knowing the response, since the first one seemed positive. 

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ No, this isn’t a joke! I do genuinely fancy you, just too shy and nervous to say who I am. From, your secret admirer.  _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ my secret admirer, you’re back ! i wasn't expecting to hear from you again today. you’ve made my day. i’m glad this isn’t a joke but i hope one day to know who you are !  _

_#but if you’re too shy that’s fine !!_ _#no pressure_ _#secret admirer_ _#anon_

Harry squealed. He was even more giddy now. Louis didn’t seem put off by his messages, which was a huge relief. Louis even made a tag for them, which Harry loved. It meant he could go search Louis blog whenever he wanted for their conversations.

He contemplated sending another message but decided he could wait until later. He needed to do some coursework before starting dinner. He just hoped he could focus. 

\+ + + + +

Niall walked into their flat right as Harry had finished up making their dinner, a simple chicken and vegetable dish from a cookbook he had gotten for Christmas. 

“Smells great, Haz!” he hollered as he dropped his school stuff off into his bedroom. 

As Niall walked back out into the kitchen, after having changed into something way more comfortable, Harry had plated their dinner. 

They both sat down at their tiny table, only made for two (maybe three) chairs. They tried to do this every night, or at least as often as they could, to catch up. 

“Okay Niall, you go first,” Harry said as he started stabbing some chicken on his fork.

Niall chewed thoughtfully before starting about his day. “Nothing really significant happened to me today. I’m tired as fuck because I fell asleep on the couch again last night and then I couldn’t fall back asleep once I went to my bed.”

“You do that every night,” Harry pointed out.

_ “ Anyway _ _,”_ Niall’s tone was clipped, “I had a quiz that I think I did pretty well on but I’ll find out for sure Thursday.” He paused to scoop up some veggies. “Yeah, I think that’s it. So what about you? Gonna finally tell me what had you all smiles earlier?”

“Well, I was but now I’m not,” Harry huffed. 

“I know you’ve been thinking about it all day and wondering if you should tell me, which you’ve finally come to the conclusion that you  _ want _ to tell me. You’re just being stubborn now.” 

Shit. How did Niall know him that well? 

Niall prompted him again. “So?”

“I did something nice today.”

Niall gave him a blank stare. “That’s what you  _ didn't _ want to tell me? Seriously, H. You do something nice every day. Multiple times a day, even.”

Sighing, Harry said, “Yeah, but this is… different…” He trailed off, still unsure of how to say it.

Niall just continued to stare. “Well?”

“I’m sending secret admirer anons to someone on Tumblr.”

Niall didn’t respond. He simply got up and left the kitchen. Harry sat in his seat, dumbfounded.

“Uhh…? Niall?” He called out. What the fuck? 

Still not speaking, Niall returned and handed his phone to Harry, who took it confusedly. 

“Yes, Ni, this is your phone.” 

“Shut up and open it. Read the texts on the screen.”

Harry typed in Niall’s passcode quickly and his phone unlocked to a conversation with **Louis.** Fuck.

**Louis** : i’m getting these anons from someone that fancies me

**Niall:** you sure someone’s not just fuckin with you ?

**Louis** : nah mate it seems genuine. they signed it  “secret admirer”

**Niall** : well congrats you’re finally gonna get laid

**Louis** : shut the fuck up neil

Harry was pretty sure he wasn’t breathing. He calmly locked Niall’s phone before he passed it back over to him.

“Well? Are you sending Tommo anons or not?” 

“I-I…” Harry stuttered. “I honestly didn’t think he’d tell  _ you _ , of all people.”

Niall scoffed, seemingly offended. “Me of all people? What the hell’s that mean?” 

“I don’t know! He’s friends with a lot of people on Tumblr! I didn’t think he’d tell you straight away. I didn’t think he’d really tell anyone at all. I didn’t  _ think! _ ” 

“No, you didn’t.” Niall finally resumed his dinner and sat back down. “But it’s on his Tumblr for everyone to see, you realize that, yeah? He didn’t have to tell me, he chose to because we’re mates. And I had already saw them before he said something to me. I just figured it was someone having him on.”

“I’m not  _ having him on. _ ” Now Harry was the one that was offended. “I do genuinely fancy him.”

“Haz,” Niall started, tone completely different, more gentle. “Now that I know it’s you, I do not think you’re just having him on. You wouldn’t joke about something like that.”

Harry relaxed at that. He did feel better after telling Niall; he wasn’t really one to keep secrets. But he did feel a little apprehensive knowing that Niall could tell Louis the truth at any minute.

“I won’t tell him,” Niall’s voice broke through his thoughts.

“How did you-?” 

Niall got up, clearing away his plate. “We may not have known each other since, like, childhood or some shit, but I’d like to think I know you pretty well.” 

“Thank you, Ni,” Harry told him with genuine sincerity. 

“But can I, like, fuck with him?”

Harry blinked in surprise. _“_ _ Fuck with him? _ ”

“Not like that, damn. Mess with him. Like, tell him I know who it is? But not say anything else.” 

Harry mulled that over for a second. He most likely would tell Louis at some point, but he trusted that Niall wouldn’t say who it was. “Yeah, sure. As long as you don’t give any sort of hint as to who it might be. Might be kinda funny to rile him up a bit.”

“Nah, he doesn’t even know we’re flatmates. At the most he knows we’re friends. Don’t worry. I’m only going to say I know who it is and leave it at that. He’s gonna get pissed but it’ll be hilarious.”

Niall grabbed his phone out again to show Harry as he texted Louis.

**Niall:** i know who your secret admirer is

Harry didn’t expect Louis to respond right away but the three gray dots appeared almost immediately. 

**Louis:** you’re joking

**Louis:** i know i shouldn’t ask bc they might not want me to know but  👀

Niall let out a loud laugh. “Oh he’s gonna be even more pissed because I have my read receipts on so he knows I’m seeing this and choosing to not reply.”

Another text popped up.

**Louis:** you’re ignoring me on purpose now

They both giggled at that. Harry knew they were being juvenile but he’s having fun with his best friend. He did feel a little childish sending the secret admirer anons already, but he was only 22 and needed to stop making himself grow up so quickly. 22 year olds can still send secret admirer messages all they want.

After cleaning up in the kitchen, they retreated to their respective bedrooms. It wasn’t late enough to go to sleep but if they stayed and worked on coursework together, they wouldn’t get anything done. Sometimes they’d work together on assignments for the class they share but they get far too distracted when working on things for other classes.

Harry got all his school stuff and sat on his bed, internally groaning about the fact his room wasn’t big enough for a desk. He would admit it made it harder to do coursework when he was comfy in bed but he’s been dealing with it all semester so far. When Niall wasn’t home sometimes he’d move to the kitchen table and work. 

He gave himself ten minutes on his phone before he started working. In a weird way it helped him focus to know that he had already looked at all his social media. But tonight he only looked at Tumblr. As he scrolled and reblogged L&Z pictures and posts, he hoped to see Louis pop up somewhere on his dashboard. He didn’t get very far in his scrolling when he saw a  _ lzrainbows _ post.

_**lzrainbows:** i have revoked @liamszayns‘s friendship card, we are no longer mates_

_ #niall is being mean to me ON PURPOSE #jvn voice: can u believe  _

Harry laughed loudly at that last hashtag. He moved to keep scrolling when he got a burst of bravery. He pressed the ♥ button, liking the post, showing his url @ziam-falls. It didn’t seem super suspicious since he was friends with Niall too. He contemplated replying to it but that  _ did _ seem suspicious so instead he continued his scrolling.

After nine minutes, he clicked over to the search and typed in Louis’ url. He swiftly navigated to his ask to leave one last anonymous message before doing coursework and going to bed. 

**_Anonymous to lzrainbows:_ ** _ I’m not sure why you’re revoking your mates friendship card but I’d gladly take it over, if it’s alright with you! I hope you have a great rest of your evening. From, your secret admirer. _

Harry pressed send and closed Tumblr. He set his phone to Do Not Disturb and somehow managed to get some actual work done.

\+ + + + +

As the next few days passed by, Harry continued to send his anonymous messages and Louis continued to answer. 

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ I’m not sure why you’re revoking your mates friendship card but I’d gladly take it over, if it’s alright with you! I hope you have a great rest of your evening. From, your secret admirer. _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ yes please ! you can take his spot, you’re already much nicer than niall anyway. and thank you, i did have a v nice day yesterday (partly due to you but shhh you can’t tell anyone) _

_#i hope you see this neil_ _#you have been replaced_ _#by my new best friend_ _#i kinda wish i could give you a name other than secret admirer hmm…_ _#secret admirer_ _#anon_

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ You can call me whatever you’d like. ;) From, your secret admirer. _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ oooh cheeky, i like it ;) _

_#you can just give me like an initial if you want ?_ _#or not bc it’s your choice !_ _#secret admirer_ _#anon_

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ If you’d like to call me something other than secret admirer, H works just fine. :)  That still feels like I’m telling you too much but I do plan to tell you who I am eventually anyway! From, your secret admirer.  _ _  
_ **_lzrainbows:_ ** _ nice to meet you, H :)  tell me about yourself ! what are some of your favourite things ? i really wanna get to know you better  _

_#most importantly_ _#are you a L &Z fan ? lmao_ _#nah but seriously_ _#i do wanna get to know you better_ _#H_ _#secret admirer_ _#anon_

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ Of course I’m a L&Z fan! Been here since the beginning. I think my favourite song of theirs would be There You Are, currently. What’s your favorite L&Z song? I don’t know what other things you want to know! Ask me some and I’ll tell you. ;) From, your secret admirer.  _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ oh i love that song ! hmm, let’s see… favourite color ? food ? person ? hobby ? it’s hard thinking of things to ask ! _

_#oh and my favourite song is probably For You_ _#me ? a hopeless romantic ? it’s more likely than you think_ _#H_ _#secret admirer_ _#anon_

It went like that for a while. Harry answered whatever questions Louis asked him. Valentine’s Day was slowly approaching which made Harry antsy. He was torn between telling Louis as soon as possible or waiting to see if he asked again. Louis even got other anons asking about the two of them.

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ so u really dont know ur secret admirer?  _ _  
_ **_lzrainbows:_ ** _ nope ! they’ve been on anon this whole time so no clue, but they’re sweet so i don’t mind the anonymity _

_#a friend said they know who it is_ _#but idk for sure !_ _#anon_

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ so you don’t know who it is but is there someone you want it to be?  _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ you can’t put me on the spot like that ! _

_#yes_ _#there is someone i’m hoping it is_ _#and no i will not tell you who !_ _#anon_

Harry’s heart sped up at that last one. Did Louis hope it was him or did he fancy someone on Tumblr too? He tried not to let it affect him, just continued to send his daily secret admirer anons. He was sure Louis had lost some followers for how often they were having conversations through Louis’ ask box but it didn’t seem like either of them cared at this point. Louis had never once acted like he didn’t want to talk to Harry; usually he was the one asking more questions or keeping the conversation going which in turn made Harry send multiple messages. 

\+ + + + +

Harry woke up on the 11th of February to Niall knocking at his bedroom door. 

“Go away, Niall,” he mumbled, certainly not loud enough for the other lad to hear. 

“I know you said something but I couldn’t hear you so I’m  _ assuming  _ you said ‘Please, come in!’” Niall’s voice sounded too cheerful for… 7.45 a.m. 

Harry rolled over to face Niall but didn’t move to get up at all. “Why are you waking me up? You know it’s my day to sleep in.” Wednesday are the days he didn’t have any classes until 11. 

Niall rolled his eyes. “You hardly ever sleep in on your late days anyway. Besides, this is important. I have a mate that needs a place to stay for a few days. He’s gonna be checking out campus. Is it cool if he comes here?”

“He needs a place to stay today? Why do I have the feeling you had this planned and forgot to tell me?”

“...Maybe so.” Niall looked regretful. “But don’t worry. He’s super chill, you’ll definitely like him.” Harry watched as he bit back a smile.  _ Weird.  _ “I just didn’t want you to come home after class and be bombarded.”

Harry sighed and sat up. “Do I at least know him?” The question was basically a moot point. Niall was a social butterfly and had friends all over the place. This could be a mate from fucking Australia for all he knew. 

“Uhh…” Niall seemed nervous. “Maybe?” 

Harry squinted his eyes, looking hard at Niall. Then he promptly fell back on his pillow. “You’re being weird but it’s too early for me to figure out why. So yes, whatever. Your secret mate can stay here for a few days. Hope he knows he gets the sofa.”

Niall was already heading back out the door. “Don’t worry, he does. I promise he’s cool. Thanks H, you’re the best!”

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered out, before he rolled back up into his blanket cocoon for a few more hours sleep. He could worry about Niall and his mate later. 

\+ + + + +

As Harry unlocked the door to their flat at 6.15 that night he realized he completely forgot about his morning conversation with Niall. His day had been thrown off since then. He didn’t even get to talk to Louis much today. He had sent a few anons but Louis had (very sweetly) left a post on his tumblr telling ‘H’ that he was very busy today and probably wouldn’t be able to reply. It was kind and thoughtful. 

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ to my darling H, i’m going out of town today so i may not be able to reply to any messages you send until later !  xx _

_#_ _didn't want you to think i’m ignoring you !!_ _#bc i’m def not :)_ _#once i get to where i’m going i’ll reply !_ _#i really hope you see this or else i’ll be pretty embarrassed lol_ _#H_ _#secret admirer_

Harry was so fucking endeared. _Darling._ He even signed it with two kisses. Louis was one of a kind; truly a great person. He still sent him a message wishing him safe travels and that they’d talk soon. Then he sent another one after one of his classes when he thought of a funny joke. (He had been sending jokes and puns to Louis for a few days now and he seemed to really like them. At the very least he humored Harry.) He sent one last one right as he was walking up the stairs to his flat. It was daunting to send but he wanted to be honest. 

**_Anonymous to lzrainbows:_ ** _ I hope this doesn’t sound presumptuous but I really missed talking to you today. It was so sweet of you to let me know why you wouldn’t be reply to any messages. Just one of the many reasons I fancy you! :) Hope to talk to you soon. From, your secret admirer x _

Most of their conversation lately had been getting to know you type stuff so this one really felt like he was putting himself on the line. He wondered if Louis missed talking to him too. Harry had absolutely no clue as to when he would actually be able to respond to any messages which left him a bit nervous. Luckily for him once he got home he could abandon Tumblr for a while, eat dinner (Niall had texted him saying he was grabbing takeaway for the three of them) and get to know Niall’s mate. 

He walked in quietly, a stark contrast to the loud laughter from somewhere in the flat. He quickly slipped his shoes off and hung up his coat. The well worn black Vans clearly belong to their guest but Harry laughed at the fact he owns the same ones.  _ Maybe Niall was right. Maybe I will get along with his mate.  _

Not wanting to interrupt whatever conversation Niall and his mate were having, Harry walked down the hallway to his bedroom. They must’ve been in the kitchen because he didn’t see either of them but was picking up bits and pieces of their conversation.

Harry quickly changed into some joggers and a sweatshirt, not bothering to look well put together, just wanting to be comfortable. He couldn’t escape the nerves he got when meeting someone new so he did his best to put on a brave face whilst he walked into the kitchen. He could see Niall clearly but only the back of his mate’s head. 

“Ah, there he is!” Niall’s voice boomed. “Harry, come see who is here!” 

The other lad turned around in his chair and Harry was pretty sure time was frozen. Because it was  _ Louis.  _ His Louis. Well, not  _ his _ but his crush, the Louis he fancied, the one he had been sending anonymous secret admirer messages too for over a week. Sitting right there at his kitchen table. 

Harry had seen pictures of Louis on Tumblr before but he was even more alluring in person. His hair was soft and fell slightly over the right side of his forehead. He was dressed in an oversized sweatshirt that made him look super cozy. His blue eyes looked at Harry curiously.

“Harry? Y’alright?” 

Shit. Harry hadn’t realized he was standing there staring at Louis, probably a little intensely with his eyes wide. 

“Oops! Sorry!” 

Louis’ smile was easy and relaxed - the complete opposite of how Harry felt. “Hi, Harry. It’s nice to meet you in person. Sorry I plan on taking over your couch for a few days.”

Harry giggled at that then blushed almost immediately. “Not a problem at all. Niall may have forgotten to tell me until this morning but,” he shrugged, “you can’t be any worse than him.” When he sent flirty anonymous messages it was so much easier to talk to Louis. 

Louis laughed and Harry almost melted.  _ He’s laughed at a joke I said! It wasn’t good and he still laughed!  _ It felt like he was sending puns via Tumblr ask all over again. 

“I promise I’m not  _ that _ bad!” Louis said, still smiling up at Harry. “Just checking out the uni campus. You go there too, yeah?”

Nodding, Harry said, “Yeah, I’m in my second year.” 

“Oh, nice mate! I’ll be going into my third year but I just need a change. I haven’t ever moved from my mum’s house.”

“Nothing wrong with that!” Harry reassured. 

“Well, H,” Niall’s voice interrupted. Harry almost forgot he was even standing there. “There’s still food left, if you’re hungry.” 

Harry glanced at Niall, still not completely okay with the fact he didn’t tell him it was  _ Louis _ coming to stay at their flat. Nonetheless, he wanted food so he took him up on his offer. 

“Hey, Ni, do you mind showing me where the loo is? I need a good shower after all that traveling.” 

_ Oh, God.  _ Harry almost dropped his slice of pizza. He did  _ not _ need to think about Louis in the shower. 

Niall replied and took him over to where their shared bathroom is. Harry continued to eat his pizza, thinking about how he was going to manage having Louis in such close proximity for days. And also how he was going to yell at Niall as soon as they were alone together, which would hopefully not be too much longer.

“Ni _ all,” _ Harry hissed as soon as Niall walked back into the kitchen. “How could you not tell me it was Louis that was coming?”

“You would’ve told me no!” he exclaimed. “And I had already told him it was fine. I wasn’t going to tell him the day of that he couldn’t stay here anymore. We had this planned before you started the whole secret admirer stuff.”

Feeling defeated, Harry slumped down into a chair at the kitchen table and groaned. “How am I supposed to be around him now? I feel so on edge.”

Niall sighed and sat down next to him. “Look, I am really sorry that I didn’t tell you. But this might be a good thing. You said before in your messages that you would tell him who you were. So maybe just get to know him? In real life, not just on Tumblr. It seemed like you two were already getting on really well.” 

“We  _ do _ get on really well,” Harry said defensively. 

Niall smiled at him. “Yeah, you do. Look, just keep being yourself. Online and in real life. He leaves the day before Valentine’s day so you have some time to figure it out anyway.” 

“Should I still send him the messages?” Harry knew they need to wrap this conversation up before Louis came back out and heard everything they were talking about.

Niall got up and clapped him on the shoulder. “I think he’d get worried if you didn’t.”

Harry nodded and stood up as well. As excited (and nervous) as he was to have Louis here in his flat, he needed some time to himself right now. As he walked by the loo he could tell that the shower wasn’t running anymore, meaning Louis would be coming out soon enough. He’d join them both later, maybe to watch a film or something.

Harry closed his bedroom door and tumbled onto his bed. He needed to pull himself together. There was only three more days until Valentine’s day. He can do this. He would keep sending Louis his secret admirer messages whilst getting to know him in real life as well. 

Luckily today was Wednesday which meant his week was almost over. Most likely Louis would follow Niall along to his classes tomorrow to get a feel for the uni so Harry wouldn’t have to worry about being a nervous wreck around him all day. He didn’t know what Friday and Saturday would entail but he could do this. He could woo real life Louis the same way he’d been wooing Tumblr Louis. 

Speaking of Tumblr Louis… Harry wondered if he’d answered any of his messages yet. He grabbed his phone out of his pocket and opened the Tumblr app. He didn’t bother wasting any time and clicked right over to Louis’ profile. He had to scroll a little through some of his queued posts but eventually he found a response. 

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ I hope this doesn’t sound presumptuous but I really missed talking to you today. It was so sweet of you to let me know why you wouldn’t be reply to any messages. Just one of the many reasons I fancy you! :) Hope to talk to you soon. From, your secret admirer x _

**_lzrainbows:_** _this is the sweetest message i have ever gotten i think ??? H, you are truly wonderful. i am safe and sound at my mates flat, i’ll be here for a few days. i really missed talking to you too but you can send me messages now and i’ll try to reply as soon as i can, love. xx_ _  
__#i hope the pet names are okay_ _#bc uhh you’re gonna be getting them now jsyk !!!_ _#i really did miss talking to you_ _#H_ _#secret admirer_ _#anon_

Harry let out a soft sigh. He was so completely enthralled by Louis. He wanted to send one more anonymous message tonight before going out and spending time with the lad himself so he quickly typed one up.

**_Anonymous to lzrainbows:_ ** _ Don’t worry, I love pet names! Having you call me one makes me feel ecstatic, to be honest. I hope you have fun with your mate but please don’t feel like you need to reply to every message I send! I’ll be here whenever you get a chance to talk. From, your secret admirer x _

Niall popped his head into Harry’s bedroom right after he hit send.

“Lou and I were gonna put a film on. You in?” He stepped into the room. “I’ll even let you sit by him,” he whispered as he wiggled his eyebrows.

Harry rolled his eyes and resisted the urge the throw a pillow at him. “I’ll join you guys but  _ please _ don’t make it awkward!”

“I’m joking, mate. Don’t worry. I won’t say anything, but I can’t promise he won’t bring it up. _ ” _

That made Harry a little hesitant. “I haven’t been obvious, have I?”

“Relax. No, you haven’t been obvious. He’s just been on it for days now, probably since you sent the first one. He really wants to know who it is because he really likes talking to them and since I joked with him about knowing who it was, he hasn’t given up talking about it. I promise he doesn’t suspect it’s you.” He paused. “But maybe he  _ wants _ it to be you,” he said, eyebrows wiggling again.

Harry rolled his eyes at that but laughed. He definitely understood why Louis would want to talk about it. He followed Niall out into their living room and took a seat on the opposite side of the sofa. As he sat down, he could see Louis close out of the Tumblr app on his iPhone. It made Harry’s hands itch to grab his own phone and see if he had a reply to his message but he held off, not wanting to look rude in front of their guest.

“So, Harry,” Louis started, making Harry’s eyes snap to him. “We’re still mutuals, yeah?”

Harry nodded, confused. “Yeah, we should be. Unless you unfollowed me somewhere along the way.” 

“Now why would I unfollow one of my favourite blogs  _ and  _ one of my favourite mutuals?” Louis cooed. Harry was pretty sure his blush was very noticeable. “Anyway. Have you seen the anons I’ve been getting?”

_ Oh shit. _ “Uh… w-what anons?”  _ Pull yourself together or he  _ will _ suspect it’s you! _

“My secret admirer anons!” Louis said, proudly. “Whoever it is is so sweet, kind of like you,” he winked at Harry. 

“You think I’m sweet?” Harry felt dumbfounded, shocked, at a loss for words. He never knew Louis thought that about him, let alone thought about him  _ at all. _

“Of course, Haz. I wasn’t lying when I said you were one of my favourite blogs and favourite mutuals.” 

Harry didn’t know what else to say to that but luckily he was saved by Niall walking back in to join them, a large bowl of popcorn in his hands. 

“Okay, lads. I think I made enough for all of us but all three of us have bottomless pits for stomachs so who knows how long it’ll actually last.” He sat the bowl on the table and looked over at Harry. “Why don’t you go grab us some more beer while Lou picks a film out?” 

Harry nodded as both him and Louis stood up. He quickly went to the kitchen and grabbed a beer for each of them, opened them, and walked back into the living room. 

As soon as he walked back in, it was apparent Niall had an agenda. He had moved over to the left side of the sofa, effectively taking the spot Harry had been sitting in. Now the only spot left was between Niall and Louis.  _ Fuck you, Horan. _

“C’mon, H! Join us!” Harry glared at Niall and his over enthusiasm. 

As Harry handed Niall and Louis their beers, he noticed a thoughtful look on Louis’ face.  _ Maybe he’s just tired, it’s been a long day for him. I’m probably just reading things wrong. _

“You alright?” He asked Louis softly. “We don’t have to watch a film if you’re tired and need to sleep.”

Louis smiled at him. “You’re sweet, but no. I’m fine. I do have to tell you though, I tend to get cuddly during movies so watch out.” They both giggled at that.

“I don’t mind,” Harry whispered back.

\+ + + + +

Louis wasn’t kidding when he said he got cuddly during movies. They were about halfway through the film and his head had ended up leaning against Harry’s shoulder. As soon as that had happened, Niall let out a quiet, but very pointed cough. Harry wanted to reach over and flick him but he didn’t want to jostle Louis. At some point later, Louis brought his arms up to wrap around Harry’s right arm, completely cuddled up. Harry wanted to put his arm around Louis’ shoulders so he could cuddle right into his side but it seemed like Louis was comfortable like this and, honestly, Harry was too.

When the film was over, Niall stood up and stretched, letting out a loud yawn. “Lou, mate. I’ve got class at 10 tomorrow morning so you better get your arse up on time.”

Louis nodded from where he was still leaned up against Harry. “Don’t worry, I’ll be up.”

Niall bid them both goodnight before he wandered off to his bedroom.

Louis sat up, stretching his arms up above his head. “Sorry for completely taking over your arm.” Harry’s eyes were glued to the small patch of skin that was exposed when Louis’ shirt rode up. “You could’ve told me to fuck off if I was annoying.”

Harry shook his head. “No, you weren’t annoying. I didn’t want to move because you seemed comfortable. I can get pretty cuddly myself so I understand.” 

“Well maybe  _ next time _ you should cuddle me,” Louis poked his side. “That way it can be comfortable for both of us.”

Harry was pretty sure his heart was going to burst out of his chest.  _ Is he flirting with me? _ He laughed bashfully and said, “Yeah, of course.” He got up, preparing to head to his bedroom.

“I’ll hold you to that!” Louis smiled up at him from his spot on the sofa. “I had a lot of fun tonight. I’ll see you tomorrow after class, yeah?” Harry nodded. “Cool. ‘Night, Harry.”

Harry smiled back at him. “Goodnight, Louis.” He set off toward his room and vowed to make it there (with the door closed) before he let out the dreamy sigh he’d held in the whole night.

He pulled off his joggers and t-shirt, leaving his pants on, and slipped into bed. He set the alarm on his phone before he realized he hadn’t checked Tumblr since after dinner, which was rare for him, clearly too engrossed in the film and Louis and cuddling to remember. 

Louis must’ve gotten on his phone as soon as Harry had left the living room because a post of his was right at the top. It was an anonymous ask, but not one from Harry.

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ how do you feel about your secret admirer?  _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ i think my secret admirer is a great person, regardless of if i know who it is or not ! _

_#i think even if they never came off anon i’d still really like them_ _#anon_

God, Harry really had it bad for him. He couldn't wait for Valentine’s day to come now. He felt more secure in telling Louis it was him, especially with how he acted toward him that night. At the very least, Louis would let Harry down gently and insist they stay friends. At most, well, they’d be boyfriends. Or Harry hoped maybe they could be.

He quickly scrolled down Louis’ blog to see if there was a reply to him before he fell asleep. 

**_Anonymous asked:_ ** _ Don’t worry, I love pet names! Having you call me one makes me feel ecstatic, to be honest. I hope you have fun with your mate but please don’t feel like you need to reply to every message I send! I’ll be here whenever you get a chance to talk. From, your secret admirer x _

**_lzrainbows:_ ** _ get ready for an onset of pet names ! love, darling, babe, cutie ! but i will probably be a little busy tomorrow again. keep sending the messages, babe. i love reading and replying to them whenever i can ! xx  _

_#every time i see a message from you in my inbox i get v happy :)_ _#H_ _#secret admirer_ _#anon_

Harry fell asleep with a smile on his face that night.

\+ + + + +

Harry knew that Niall had a later class than him on Thursdays, which meant he got to sleep in a little bit more. Not expecting to see him (or Louis) awake before he left, Harry got up much quieter than usual. He couldn’t hear any noises coming from the living room so he crept quietly to the bathroom to take his shower. After he was done, he walked into the kitchen wearing only his joggers from the night before and was surprised to see Louis sitting at the kitchen table, much like the night before, drinking a cup of tea.

“Wasn’t expecting you to be up,” Harry said softly, going to make tea for himself.

Louis laughed. “No offense to you and your sofa, but I couldn’t sleep well. But that usually happens when I’m somewhere unfamiliar.”

“I’m not offended but the couch might be.”

Louis laughed again; Harry really enjoyed making him laugh. He was still in awe of the fact he could hear his laugh in person which made the next thing he said quite embarrassing.

“You have a cute laugh.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he quickly turned back around toward the counter and finished fixing his tea. _How embarrassing! I’ve known him in person for not even 24 hours and I can’t control what I say._ _I shouldn’t be left alone with fit boys, obviously._

“And  _ you _ have a nice back.” Louis complimented him and Harry froze. “Do you work out?”

“Morning lads,” Niall said through a yawn as he walked into the kitchen, effectively ruining the mood.

“Didn’t expect you up so early, Neil.” 

Harry waited for Niall to say something snarky back, he truly hated when people called him Neil, but all Louis got was a half-hearted flip of the bird. Niall must be wrapped around Louis’ finger too. 

“Gotta be up early to entertain your arse,” Niall responded. 

“And what a great arse it is, right H?”

Harry froze at Louis’ words for a second time that morning. Between being called H  _ (oh shit, does he know?)  _ and the mention of Louis’ arse Harry had completely blanked out. “I- uh…” 

“Good job, mate,” Niall said as he sat down at the table with his breakfast. “You broke him right before he has classes all day.”

At the mention of that Harry snapped back to reality. “Fuck. I’m gonna be late.” And he rushed out of the kitchen, leaving behind (most) of the thoughts of Louis’ arse. 

\+ + + + +

Being late definitely threw Harry off for the first part of his day. He was halfway through his second class when he realized he hadn’t sent Louis an anon yet. Usually he sent one before class when he was having breakfast. Today was totally different for him since he talked to Louis  _ in real life _ instead of sending a message. 

His fingers craved to grab his phone but this class was one of his more difficult ones and he didn’t want to risk missing something important. But it didn’t help him stay focused now that his mind was on Louis once again. 

As soon as his professor ended his lecture Harry whipped his phone out of his pocket. He had a missed call from his sister but he’d call her back later. He opened the Tumblr app and right there at the top of his dash was a reblogged photo set from Louis. It was lyric art, some beautiful handwritten calligraphy, of his favourite L&Z song. He scrolled down, intending to add it to his queue before sending Louis an anon, when he saw the tags Louis had added to the post. 

#this is for my darling H :) #i remember you said this was your fave l&z song #and when i saw this i thought of you :) #made me smile #hope you’re well xx #H

Harry couldn’t help the massive grin overtaking his face. Fuck, he fancied Louis so much. Things like that added onto the fact he knows him in real life make it harder to  _ not  _ tell him. Harry clicked reblog before adding it to his queue, even typing up some tags about how much he loved this song and that it was his favourite. He didn’t care if Louis realized it was him. He had already called him H so he might already know. 

He went onto Louis’ profile and sent him a quick anonymous ask. 

_**Anonymous to lzrainbows:** Hiiii! Sorry I didn’t send a message earlier, I was running late this morning! How is it going with your mate? I feel like I haven’t been sending you as many messages, I’m sorry. I miss talking to you too. From, your secret admirer x _

He heard a pointed cough and looked up quickly. All the rest of the students had filtered out of the room and his professor was standing there, seemingly trying to get ready for his next class. Harry was so caught up in his phone (Louis) to even notice. 

“Oh sh- Sorry! Sorry, sir.” Harry shoved his stuff inside his bag and got up as fast as he could, practically running. “Have a good weekend!” He called as he approached the door. 

“You as well, Harry. Have a good Valentine’s Day.” His professor said back right as Harry walked out of the room, voice laced with a knowing hint. He must’ve picked up on Harry blushing and grinning at his phone. 

_ I sure hope it’s a good Valentine’s Day.  _ He still hadn’t figured out how he would tell Louis he was his secret admirer but at this point he would probably just blurt it out at a random time. He was 90% sure Louis was flirting with him this morning in the kitchen before Niall interrupted them  _ and  _ Louis had already admitted to liking his H anon. Things were looking pretty good in Harry’s favour. And since Valentine’s Day was on Sunday he’d probably tell him before that, but he still wanted to see if more flirting happened first. 

\+ + + + +

As Harry walked home that night he realized he never called his sister back. He quickly dialled her number and listened to it ring.

“Finally! I need to talk to you,” His sister said as she answered the phone.

Harry was confused. “‘Finally?’ Did you call me for something important?” 

“Something important for you, yeah. Who is the fit lad on Niall’s instastory?” 

“Uhh…” Well, shit. He wanted to tell his sister but he didn’t want to jinx anything. “He’s a friend of Niall’s, obviously.”

_ “ Obviously _ ,” Gemma mocked back. “Is he single?”

“Gemma, do I need to remind you of a very nice, very handsome lad named Michal?”

Gemma practically growled through the phone. “Harry, I swear to God, I will hang up on your sorry arse and call Niall to ask him. You know he will tell me everything!” 

Fuck. Yeah, Niall would tell her everything, including his secret admirer messages to Louis. Not that he was embarrassed by those, but if he told Gemma about Louis then he could control more of what she knows. 

Harry sighed, “Okay, fine. But I’m walking home so I only have a few minutes. You’re gonna get the shortened version and deal with it.” Gemma hummed so he continued. “His name is Louis, he’s a friend of Niall’s, as we both know. He’s in town visiting to check out the uni because he wants to transfer here. Yes, he is incredibly fit and you’d be delighted to know I’ve embarrassed myself around him more times than I can count. Any questions?”

“Is he single?”

“Yes.”

“Is he gay?”

“Yes, he’s very open about it.”

“So are you.” She sounded smug, like Harry could feel her smirk through the phone. “And?”

Harry sighed again. He was getting closer to his flat and he wanted to end the call before he walked inside. “And what, Gems? I’ve only known him in real life for like, two days. What do you expect me to do?”

“In real life? What, did you meet him in a dream before? Maybe a past life?” She laughed aloud at her own words.

“No, you nutter. We’ve talked before online.” 

“Ah,” She said, knowingly, “One of your Tumblr friends.”

He loved that she understood. This was why he was so close to her. There was no judgement between them, just a few sibling insults along the way. 

“Yeah, exactly. So I don’t really want to mess anything up. We were kind of flirting this morning but Niall walked in and ruined it.”

“Cockblock,” Gemma muttered. 

Harry laughed. “It was ill-timed, yeah, but looking back I’m kind of glad he walked in. I was about to be a stuttering mess.”

“Well, it’s a good thing Louis may be transferring to your uni then. You’d definitely be seeing more of him. Can sort out your flirting technique before then.”

“Oh piss off!” Harry laughed again. “I gotta go though, Gems.”

“You better keep me updated on the Louis situation or I’ll be forced to go to Niall.”

“Please don’t.”

They said their goodbyes and Harry pocketed his phone before he walked into his flat. He half expected to hear loud laughter from Niall and Louis again like he did the previous night, but as soon as he walked in all he could hear was the television at a low volume, low enough that he couldn’t tell what was actually playing.

He didn’t bother taking off his shoes or his jacket, choosing to walk into the living room instead. There he saw Louis sitting on the sofa, munching on some crisps, scrolling through Tumblr on his phone, and not giving the television any interest in the slightest. 

“Hey, Lou,” Harry said. Louis had probably heard him come in but he didn’t want to scare the poor lad. 

“Hey, H!”  _ There’s that  _ H  _ nickname again.  _ “I didn’t know if it was you coming home or Niall getting back already. I didn’t think he’d be back for a few hours.”

Harry set his bag down while he took off his jacket. “Where’d Niall go?” He couldn’t remember Niall saying anything about not being around when Louis was here.

“He had something to work on; a paper for his English class that he forgot about. The professor brought it up today and Niall panicked. So he went back to the library to finish it with some other people from his class. ” 

Harry nodded as he sat down on the sofa. Now he remembered Niall moaning and groaning about the paper he had to write because he was worried he wouldn’t do well on it. “Oh, yeah. I remember his saying something about that a while ago. Knowing him, he’ll be at the library all night trying to get it just perfect.”

Louis laughed and turned his body towards Harry, sitting cross-legged. They had a good bit of distance between them. “He also said I could steal something to eat since he wouldn’t be here for dinner but, and I’m quoting here, ‘Harry will probably make something when he gets home and realized I left you here alone. Harry loves to host.’” Louis smirked at him. “Is he right?”

Harry blushed and looked away. “Well, he’s not  _ wrong.”  _ He really did love being a good host. Even if it was just a classmate coming over, he’d always make a nice dinner. He was very Monica Geller-esque in that sense. 

“So what are you making, Chef Harry?” Louis asked, poking at Harry’s arm. It tingled beneath Louis’ touch. 

Harry thought about what they had in their pantry currently. He knew they needed to do some grocery shopping soon so this meal might be more on the easy side of things. 

“I know I have some stuff for pasta, if you’re okay with that? It won’t be super fancy, I’m afraid to admit. Niall probably forgot to mention that we haven’t done the shopping this week. I’ll have to do something simple.”

Louis smiled at him. “Simple is perfectly fine with me, babe.”

Harry smiled back at him before getting up to start dinner. “You can stay in here and watch tv or whatever you were doing before. It won’t take me long so I can let you know when I’m done.”

“The only reason I’m not opposing is because I have yet to reply to my secret admirer. Gotta think of something cute to say and woo them, yeah?”

Harry’s eye twitched at that and he plastered on a nervous smile. “Yeah. I’m just gonna-” He quickly exited the living room and starts his work on dinner in the kitchen. 

All the previous thoughts of  _ I’ll just blurt it out to Louis and tell him I’m his secret admirer _ completely flew from his head. He forgot how nervous he got in front of Louis. How the hell was he supposed to tell him? And what if Louis was mad that it was Harry? What if he really did fancy someone else on Tumblr who’s name started with a H that  _ wasn’t Harry? _

He worked on the pasta to calm his anxiety. He knew he was psyching himself up. Quickly he turned on some music at a low volume, L&Z of course, as he tried to calm himself down. He even lit one of his favourite candles to help. It was rose and vanilla scented. Niall always hated when Harry lit candles during dinner because then he couldn’t smell his food, so whenever he was out, the candles were lit. 

“Pretty romantic, innit?” 

Harry whipped his head around to look at Louis’ smiling face. He was still taken aback by how attractive Louis was. He had pushed his fringe off of his forehead, making his blue eyes shine brighter. His smile was always genuine, showing off cute crinkles by his eyes and mouth. He wore his scruff so well it made Harry jealous. 

“Oh, uh, sorry. I can blow it out if you want…” Harry trailed off. He didn’t light the candle to be romantic but he did see where Louis was coming from. 

Louis walked up to Harry and gently grabbed his bicep. “Nah, love. I don’t mind a bit of romance.” He let go but stayed right next to Harry’s side, pressed up against him, and looked at the stove. “It smells good.”

Harry huffed out a laugh. “I’ve boiled some water and put the pasta in. And I’m sauteing some vegetables. I told you it was simple.”

He could’ve swore he felt the ghost of fingers across his lower back as Louis moved toward the table to sit. “Simple doesn’t mean inadequate, my dear H.” He put his head in the palm of his right hand and watched as Harry finished dinner.

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer,” Harry joked.

Louis chuckled lightly. “Maybe I should. They don’t make them like you in Donny. Gotta show you off to all my mates back home.”

Harry was sure that if he looked at Louis, the latter would wink at him. He wasn’t subtle about his flirting with Harry. But all the same, it made Harry blush so he ducked his head and stayed quiet, finishing their dinner quickly. 

Harry put the food on two plates (and saved some for Niall in a plastic tupperware) before setting it down at the table and taking a seat across from Louis.

“Wow, this looks great!” Louis said enthusiastically. “I still live at home so sometimes my mum makes dinner but she’s a nurse so a lot of the time I’m left to cook for my hoard of younger siblings when she’s still at work.”

“I could teach you how to make something like this. If you wanted. It’s really easy and you wouldn’t even have to make the vegetables if you have picky eaters.” 

“You’re so sweet, you know that right?” Louis paused his eating and smiled fondly at Harry. Harry looked down at the table and shook his head back and forth. “You really are. But I’m not sure how helpful it’d be to learn how to make this if I end up moving.”

That made Harry look back up at Louis. “So are you moving? Did you like the uni?” 

Louis nodded as he twirled some pasta around his fork. “Yeah, I really did. I think it’d be really good for me to get out of Donny, as much as I love it there. I mean, my family is there so it’s going to be hard as fuck. But I think I could find friends that are like family here.” He looked at Harry and grinned.

“Yeah,” Harry breathed out. It’d be amazing to see Louis every day; to be able to talk with him, laugh with him, spend time with him. Harry had quick daydreams floating through his head just thinking about it. And maybe one day it could turn into more. 

He heard Louis’ feet moving under the table before he felt Louis hook his ankle around his own.  _ Oh my god.  _ He glanced at Louis again, but he was looking down at his food, a small smile playing on his lips, cheeks a little more pink than normal. 

“Maybe I could find a boyfriend, too.” Louis’ voice was so quiet, a mere whisper between them but Harry heard it loud and clear. 

All of Harry’s emotions flew to the surface of his heart and they were all chanting  _ tell him, tell him, tell him. _

“I’m your secret admirer.” 

Louis’ head whipped up and he looked directly at Harry the same second Harry dropped his fork to his plate with a loud clatter. The noise echoed loudly in the small kitchen.

“I- shit. Sorry. I’m so sorry.” Harry pushed his chair back and practically leapt up. He had the urge to run but he didn’t know where to go. He would feel awful if he left Louis alone. He stood in the middle of the kitchen nervously wringing his hands together while Louis sat at the table, still silent. 

“Harry,” Louis started. They stared at each other from a distance. “H…”

“You knew.” It wasn’t a question. Harry had his suspicions that Louis knew.

Louis got up from the table, his chair making a loud scraping noise against the tile floor. He walked over to where Harry stood before he replied, a small amount of space left between them.

“I didn’t know right away. Not even when Niall told me he knew who it was. I didn’t assume it until he said you were his roommate. I didn’t want to say anything until you were ready, even if you never were. I was still going to try and charm you,” he let out a soft, self-deprecating laugh. “I had hoped it was you, fuck. You don’t know how badly I had hoped it was you.”

“You- you wanted it to be me?” Harry’s head was spinning. 

Louis stepped closer, reaching out and grabbing Harry’s hands. “Of course I wanted it to be you. I’ve been so infatuated with you since we first were in that group chat together. When no one used it anymore, I tried to think of any reason I could to message you privately just to talk, which I did a few times.” Harry remembered those times. He always wanted to keep the conversation going but would always come up blank on what to say. “I got an anon asking if there was someone I wanted my secret admirer to be and I was so close to tagging you. I wanted to put myself out there and just tell you how I felt.”

“You’re telling me now,” Harry said. He laced their fingers together and pulled Louis a little closer. “And I’m telling you. I was so fucking nervous but knowing you feel the same it makes it a little easier.” 

Louis took his hands out of Harry’s and wrapped his arms around him instead. Harry leaned into the hug, wrapping his arms around Louis. It felt right. He could feel Louis mumble something where his mouth was squished up against Harry’s chest. Harry pulled back a little so he could hear him. “Hmm?”

“We should finish dinner,” Louis said.

As they finish their dinner, they continue their conversation from before. They talked about uni, their families, and their friends. Every so often they’d throw in a flirty comment, making the other one blush. They tried to hold hands on the table but it made it hard to eat _ (“Harry! I just can’t eat left handed, I’m sorry!”), _ so they settled on playing footise.

After, they decided to cuddle on the couch and watch something on Netflix. They made plans for a date the next evening, wanting to do it as soon as possible before Louis left Saturday evening. Niall had already planned on spending Saturday morning with Louis exploring the city so he could get a feel for it, which meant Friday night was reserved for Harry. 

When Niall got home late that night, he saw the pair asleep and tangled together on the couch. Louis’ head was resting on Harry’s chest, their arms around each other. He regrettably woke them up so they wouldn’t keep sleeping in an uncomfortable position. But not before taking a picture first. 

\+ + + + +

The next morning Niall made them all breakfast and the three of them sat together at the small table eating pancakes. Harry gave Louis a shy smile when he walked into the kitchen but Louis beamed at him and said “Good morning, H,” which made all of Harry’s insecurities fly out of the window.

Niall insisted he take Louis out for lunch that day, as an apology for leaving him alone the night before. Louis had argued back that it was fine, not a big deal as he got to spend time with Harry anyway. Niall wouldn’t take no for an answer, though, so when lunchtime rolled around they were out the door. Harry secretly thought that Niall wanted to gossip with Louis about the two of them. 

Harry didn’t mind the time alone before his date (!!!) with Louis. It gave him time to do all of the self-care things he enjoyed doing before a night out. He had no idea how long Louis and Niall would be out for but that didn’t really matter. He took a nice, long, warm bath, letting his mind clear of his insecurities and anxieties. He did a facemask while he relaxed in the tub, mostly because he forgot that his sister had given him a pack for his birthday about two weeks before.

He washed his short hair last, silently wishing it was longer again. He loved that he donated it but he still preferred his longer locks. It had been a few months of growing out and his curls were slowly getting closer to his ears again. At the very least, it gave him an excuse to wear headscarves again, which was one of his favorite looks.

By the time he left the bathroom, Niall and Louis were back. He could hear them in the living room, yelling and laughing over a video game. He didn’t want to disturb them so he went back to his room, closed the door, and turned on L&Z almost as loud as it could go, knowing they wouldn’t mind the music. 

Harry quickly picked an outfit out, already having something in mind. He didn’t want to dress too fancy, and it was still cold outside, so he settled for a black sweater with the planets stitched across the front, paired with jeans and white sneakers. He thought it was comfy, cozy, and cute.

He finished the rest of his routine back in the bathroom, brushing his teeth, putting on cologne and deodorant, and adding some product to his hair to keep his curls soft and frizzless. 

By the time Harry was done getting ready, it was almost time for him and Louis to leave. He walked back out into the living room only to see Niall sat on the couch watching golf. 

“Uhh, where’s Louis?” He asked, nervous again. 

Niall looked up at him and whistled lowly. “You look cute, H. Anyway, Lou went to the shop for something. Said it would only take him a few minutes.” 

Just then there was a knock at the door. Harry looked at Niall, confused, but Niall just smirked back at him.

“Might want to get that, mate.” Niall didn’t move from his place on the couch.

Harry walked over to the door, not really knowing what the hell was going on, and opened it. On the other side was Louis, holding a bouquet of flowers, smiling bashfully at Harry. 

“Lou,” Harry said on an exhale. “Wow, those are beautiful.” 

Louis handed the flowers over to Harry and stepped inside before closing the door. “I’m glad you like them. I wanted to find something as beautiful as you.” 

Harry blushed as he quickly went to the kitchen to cut the stems and put them in water. He could hear Niall and Louis having a hushed conversation in the hallway, probably finalizing their plans for the next day. 

As Harry walked back out to the hallway, Louis reached his hand out to take Harry’s. Harry held out his pointer finger, signaling ‘just a moment’, before he slipped on his jacket. After his jacket was on, he took Louis’ hand and quickly laced their fingers together.

“Now, you kids have fun and be safe,” Niall said in a mock parental voice.

“Alright,  _ dad,” _ Harry mocked back. 

“Thank god you said dad and not daddy,” Louis muttered under his breath, causing Harry to let out a loud, honking laugh. He slapped his hand over his mouth to stifle it. 

Niall looked amused at the exchange, a grin on his face. “Can’t deny you two are cute together.” 

Harry cleared his throat before saying, “Well, I think it’s time to go!” And he pulled Louis out the door before Niall could say anything else to them. 

\+ + + + +

Even though Louis wasn’t from the area, he insisted on planning the date. Harry didn’t want to argue, it was a very sweet gesture. He had assured Louis it didn’t need to be some lavish night; they were both broke uni students. Harry was mostly excited to spend time alone with Louis. 

The restaurant Louis chose was more of a cafe, and he looked nervous as they approached the door, but Harry beamed at him and said it was perfect. Sitting at the table in the corner, Louis looked so cozy in his half-zip sweatshirt and worn jean jacket, Harry wanted to sit right next to him and cuddle up. 

As they waited for their food, they held hands over the table, reminiscent of the night before when it was too hard to do whilst eating. Every so often at a lull in the conversation, they’d smile at each other before one blushed and looked away. To Harry, it felt so comfortable. He had never clicked with someone right away and felt so at ease in their presence before. Not even when he met Niall. 

They ate their meals and continued talking. When they were done and had walked back outside, Louis sheepishly admitted, “I didn’t have anything else planned.” 

Harry grabbed his hand, laced their fingers, and started to walk. “That’s absolutely fine, Lou. I told you, it didn’t need to be some extravagant first date. You already know I like you. You don’t need to woo me.”

Louis leaned into his side, out of warmth and comfort. “But I want to woo you, babe!” They both giggled. “You deserve to be wooed.”

“If you move here, we can woo each other all the time. You deserve to be wooed too.”

Louis stopped abruptly and pulled Harry off to the side, away from other people walking on the pavement. “Harry, you are… you’re such a wonderful person. I don’t think I’ve ever felt like this toward any other person I’ve dated. And I just want you to know how special you are.” 

Harry let go of Louis’ hand and wrapped his arms around his waist, pulling him into a slight hug. They stood like that for a minute before Harry responded.

“I’ve never felt like this about anyone else either. You make me feel comfortable. Safe. I think we could have something really special.”

Louis snuggled up closer to Harry, surrounded by the warmth of their body heat. 

“But are we dating?” Harry blurted out. He knew he was ruining their soft moment but he had to ask. He didn’t have much time left with Louis and he wanted to know before he left.

Louis craned his neck back to look at Harry while still being wrapped in his arms. “Well, we did just go on a date. You were there, yeah? Or was I with some other tall, curly haired bloke?”

Harry laughed loudly. “No, I mean, like, are we boyfriends? Just dating? Mutually exclusive? I just want to know where we stand before you leave. I want us to be on the same page with this. We both have said we fancy the other, I just want to know where we go from there.” 

Louis stepped a little out of Harry’s embrace. “I want to be with you, H. I really do. So how do you feel about continuing the way we’re going? If we get the chance from now until the time I move to see each other, we will do that. I could take the train here or you could come to Donny and visit. We can call each other boyfriends or tell people we’re together or seeing each other or whatever you want to call it! I just want people to know you’re with me and I’m with you. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to rush.”

Harry quickly shook his head. “I don’t want to rush either, but I’d quite like to call you my boyfriend. I like you so much, Lou. Fuck. I will definitely be coming to Donny to visit because I don’t think I can go months without seeing you again, if you’ll have me.”

Louis went to tickle Harry’s side so Harry grabbed his hands again. “I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want you there, love!” 

Harry smiled fondly at him. He was so completely endeared that he got caught up in staring at Louis’ blue eyes.

“So now that we’ve had  _ that _ conversation, can I kiss you?” Louis’ voice cut through Harry’s thoughts, making him choke slightly on his breath. 

“Yeah! Y-yes. That would be, uh. Yeah, I’d really like that.”  _ Smooth. _

Louis laughed his sweet, airy laugh, not bothered by Harry’s stammering. He brought his hands to clasp around Harry’s neck while Harry brought his hands to the small of Louis’ back. 

Harry leaned his head down slightly, letting their foreheads rest together. It was intimate and soft. He could feel Louis’ breath on his lips, a suggestion of what was to come. 

Louis must’ve been impatient because he looked deep into Harry’s eyes and as soon as Harry let out a slight nod, Louis leaned in and captured their lips together. The first touch of contact was cold, their lips slightly frozen from the temperature outside. But they quickly melted into it, mouths opening up and letting their tongues explore the others mouth. 

Harry backed himself up to the wall of the building they were standing next. Or maybe Louis guided him backwards. He wasn’t sure. They only thing he knew at that moment was the feeling of Louis’ lips on his, the drag of their tongues together, and the way his hands went from around his neck to across his shoulders and down to rest on his chest. There was the slightest hint of sexually charged energy between them but they both knew that wasn’t where the kiss was heading.

He wasn’t sure how long they stood there completely engrossed in each other or even who pulled away first. One minute they were kissing and the next they were back to being cuddled up together. Harry was in a state of bliss; he hadn’t once imagined this would be how his weekend would go. 

They walked back to the flat, noses red from the cold and cheeks pink from happiness. It wasn’t really late, but they knew they would be up early for Louis’ last day with them. Louis had mentioned Niall wanted to give them the flat for the night to have more alone time, but he reassured him that he didn’t need to do that. 

As they walked in, they could hear Niall’s snores from his bedroom. They quietly took off their shoes and coats. Harry walked with Louis into the living room, stopping in front of the couch. 

“I feel like I should be walking you to your bedroom door,” Louis joked.

“It does feel a bit silly, doesn’t it? We went out on a date only to come back to the same flat but not the same bed.” 

Louis leaned in to give Harry a soft kiss on the cheek. “I don’t mind, babe. We want to take this slow, which is 100% fine with me. We can give each other one more goodnight kiss and go our separate ways to bed. We’ll see each other in the morning. And I hope you know that you  _ will  _  be joining Niall and I on our trek around the city. I won’t let our last few hours together go to waste!” 

“I was hoping you’d ask,” Harry said shyly. “I didn’t want to intrude.”

“Babe, you won’t be intruding. I want you there and I know Niall won’t care. That way you can go with him to take me to the train station.”

“Sounds like a plan, Lou.” 

They share one more goodnight kiss (or maybe three or four) before Harry walked off to his bedroom, a happy, content smile on his face. 

\+ + + + +

The next day, the three of them ate breakfast together before Louis packed up his stuff and they set off to explore the city. Harry offered to carry his bag for him and Louis politely declined, but not before boasting to Niall what a gentleman his boyfriend was. It made Harry get warm and tingly from his head to his toes just hearing Louis refer to him like that. 

By early evening they were at the train station, Louis preparing for his journey back to Doncaster. Harry had double-checked that he had Louis’ phone number stored in his phone. 

“H, even if you didn’t have my number, I have yours so I can just text you, which I will do as soon as I can. And Niall has my number if you ever lose it. And  _ and _ there’s always Tumblr.” 

At the mention of that, Harry realized he hadn’t even thought of Tumblr since he revealed himself as Louis’ secret admirer. He smirked to himself at the thought of sending Louis one last anonymous message before he posted to his (and Louis’) followers that he was the secret admirer. 

Niall made sure to give them privacy to say their goodbyes, meaning he stared off to the side while Harry and Louis kissed in between promises to call and text as soon as they could. 

\+ + + + +

When Harry woke up Valentine’s Day morning, he had a text from Louis waiting on his home screen.

**Louis:** Happy Valentine’s Day, boyfriend ♥ I wish we were spending the day together but I wouldn’t change a thing about the last few days !

Harry quickly went to Louis’ Tumblr to send one last anon for old time’s sake.

_**Anonymous asked:** Happy Valentine’s Day Louis! Should I reveal myself now? From, your secret admirer xxxx  _

_**lzrainbows:** babe, i think you have to now bc i have a slew of anons in my inbox asking where you’ve been lately and i really wanna tell them why you haven’t been sending me as many anons ! xxxx  
#was that too much info ? lol #don’t worry i’ll let you post it and then i’ll be the first to reblog it :) #H #secret admirer #anon_

Once Harry saw that Louis replied to his anon, he went to his own profile to post a picture. It was one of Harry and Louis on their day out with Niall. He had insisted on taking pictures of them together now that they were ‘official’ and they came in handy for Harry’s big reveal as Louis’ secret admirer.

Underneath the picture, he captioned it  **From, your secret admirer** and as promised, Louis was the first one to reblog it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! [Here](http://flicker-album.tumblr.com/post/182765272675/from-your-secret-admirer-by-flicker-album) is a rebloggable Tumblr post :)


End file.
